


avoidance

by notcaycepollard



Category: Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D. (TV)
Genre: Angst with a Happy Ending, Daisy Is The Only Marvel Superhero, F/M, Fluff, Fluff and Angst, Phil Coulson: human disaster, mentions of Phil/Rosalind, mentions of one-sided Lincoln/Daisy, the team knows what's up
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-11-16
Updated: 2015-11-16
Packaged: 2018-05-01 22:24:45
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,998
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/5223245
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/notcaycepollard/pseuds/notcaycepollard
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>(noun) an act or practice of avoiding or withdrawing from something</p>
            </blockquote>





	avoidance

**Author's Note:**

> post 3x07 because THIS SHOW *screams*

When Coulson gets back from breakfast, he doesn't expect to find Daisy sitting in his office, working on the display screen.

"Oh!" she says, startled, shifts uncomfortably. "Sorry, I'll, uh, I was just... I'll leave you to it." Her eyes sweep him as she turns to go, and he's uncomfortably aware that he's wearing yesterday's suit, aware that she's aware of it.

"Everything alright?" he asks, and she nods silently, looks down at her tablet.

"Fine," she says, "everything's fine."

"Okay," he says, clears his throat. "We'll be visiting the ATCU containment facility today to ensure Dr Garner is, ah, appropriately cared for. Wheels up in half an hour, I need you to prepare." _  
_

"I'd really rather not," Daisy says, and Coulson raises an eyebrow.

"Really? That's unexpected, you were campaigning to get a look a few days ago."

"And then I  _got_ a look," Daisy reminds him, looking even more uncomfortable. "I don't... I don't want to go anywhere near the ATCU right now. Sir."

"Oh," Coulson says, pauses, looks at her carefully, and she doesn't make eye contact. "Near the ATCU? Or near Rosalind?"

" _Coulson_ ," Daisy sighs, "seriously, do you really want to have this conversation? Now?" He doesn't. He doesn't at all.

"May's asked for you to go," he says instead, "to make sure Andrew's being treated well," and Daisy catches her lip with her teeth.

"Okay," she says after a moment. "Because May asked. I'll see you in half an hour. Change your suit."

 

+

  
Daisy knocks on the door to what's officially a storage vault and has unofficially become Jemma's office, feeling a little silly. But Jemma perks up when she sees her, gestures for her to come in, flings her arms around her when she enters the room.

"Daisy!" she says, sounding pleased but surprised. "I didn't expect you to visit me in here. Not that you're not welcome, of course."

"I just wondered," Daisy says, diffident, and then comes out with it. "I just wondered if I could share your workspace for a while."

"Oh! I mean, of course. It's not like there isn't  _room_. But don't you usually work in the briefing room?"

"Yeah, it's just, it's really, uh..."

" _Public_ ," Jemma says, and her eyes are soft. "Too much chance of running into people?"

"I'm not trying to avoid anyone!" Daisy says, too quickly, and then sighs. "Okay, that was totally convincing, I'm sure."

"Daisy," Jemma says softly. "I'm not working in the lab. I've set my own office up in a  _storage vault_. You want to talk about avoiding people, believe me, I understand what that's like."

"Yeah," Daisy says. "Okay. Thanks, Jemma."

 

+

 

"Mack," Coulson calls, "Hunter, my office. New mission, I'm prepping you both."

"Seriously?" Hunter says, looking more excited than Coulson has seen in weeks. "Yes! I promise, sir, I won't let you down, I won't ice  _anyone_ who doesn't deserve it."

"Yeah, Hunter, buddy, that's not exactly  _reassuring_ ," Mack tells him, as they walk up the stairs, and Coulson hides a smirk.

"Here's the mission brief," he says once they're in his office, pulls up the information and runs through it briefly. "Not an Inhuman extraction. Not HYDRA, probably. But we need boots on the ground to investigate, so you're up. Don't let me down, Hunter."

"You want Daisy on this, sir?" Mack asks, and Coulson shakes his head.

"She's busy with Secret Warriors, this is too low-level to pull her off that. But Hunter, if you could find Mr Campbell, let him know he's wanted at the Cocoon for field performance assessment."

"Let him kn- sir, I'm not your  _messenger boy_ , why can't you tell Lincoln yourself?" Hunter sputters indignantly, and Coulson fixes him with a look.

"I can keep you grounded if you'd rather," he says mildly, and Hunter rolls his eyes.

" _Fine_ , I'll tell him, god forbid you do anything that  _makes you uncomfortable_ ," he says, shares a glance with Mack that Coulson feels is entirely too knowing. 

 

 

+

 

"Hey, Agent Johnson, you got a minute?" Joey says, pausing in the doorway of the lounge, and Daisy locks her screen, tilts her head to indicate he should come in. He sits down next to her on the couch, looking a little nervous.

"Any time," she tells him honestly, "and you know it's just Daisy, right?"

"Right, yeah," he agrees. "Look, I - I know I'm still being assessed, and I'm not ready yet, but if you need any help, anything with the work you're doing assessing the prisoners we rescued from ATCU, just let me know, okay? I just want to  _help_. These are my people, right? These are our people? That's what you've been telling me, anyway. So, I'm here for them, okay."

"Thanks, Joey," Daisy says, touches his shoulder.

"And, uh," he adds, "I know it's not really my place to say, but you should talk to the Director about what went down. I've seen him around, he looks like a kicked puppy."

 

+

 

"So," May says, shutting the door to his office. "Have you talked to Daisy yet?"

"About what?" Coulson replies, and May fixes him with something close to a glare.

"I know I was away for the beginning of it. But it seems to me like Daisy had a lot of concerns about working with the ATCU. Concerns that turned out pretty much entirely valid."

"I'm sorry about Andrew-" Coulson begins, and May frowns.

"No, that's not- Andrew's safe, safe as he can be. We're still working on a cure. I'm not talking about  _Andrew_ , Phil."

"Daisy knows I made a call based on the information I had at the time," Coulson says stiffly.

"Really," May says. "Like you made a call about Theta Protocol? You have a habit of keeping your best lieutenants in the dark, Phil, you might want to work on that."

 

+

 

"I'm cutting you off," Mack says, "seriously, don't make me lock my espresso machine away, kiddo, I will do it. Any more of that and you won't need powers for me to call you Tremors."

"Oh, come  _on_ ," Daisy says, rolls her eyes. "I've only had, like-"

"Four cups," Mack says darkly, and Daisy thinks, okay, maybe he has a point. "What are you even doing in here, anyway? Surely watching me fix these engines can't be that interesting."

"What, I can't hang out with my field partner?" Daisy asks. "Anyway, I'm doing work, look."

"Uh huh," Mack says, wipes his hands on the rag tucked into his belt. "You wanna talk about it?"

"About what?" 

"Price," Mack says, more patiently than she deserves. "The ATCU turning out just as bad as you predicted. Grant Ward resurfacing. All this shit you're going through."

"There's nothing to talk about," Daisy says, takes a deep breath. She can feel her heart racing, her skin prickling. Mack definitely might have had a point about her espresso intake.

"Uh  _huh_ ," Mack says again. "In that case, hand me that spanner."  


 

+

 

Coulson is just looking for Daisy, that's all, but the corridors of the base seem emptier than usual.

"Mack," he says, falls into step with him in the hallway. "Have you seen Daisy around?"

"Oh," Mack mutters, "come  _on_ ," and then, "sorry, sir, she's off-base, she's gone to the Cocoon for a few days with Lincoln."

"Right," Coulson says, frowns. "Really?"

"Yeah, all those prisoners we rescued, she said there's still a lot of work with transitioning them as they come out of stasis, she wanted Lincoln's help. She didn't tell you?"

"No," Coulson says. "No, she didn't."

 

+

 

Daisy's in her workout gear, doesn't expect to run into anyone else in the gym, but, "Daisy, hey," Bobbi says, looking pleased to see her, and okay, that's fine, she likes Bobbi.

"Hi," she replies, "coming or going?"

"Just getting started," Bobbi grins, "if you want, once you've warmed up we could go a few rounds?"

"Sure," Daisy agrees, "that sounds good, thanks." The sparring  _is_ good; it shakes Daisy loose, gets her rolling in a way she hasn't felt for weeks, and afterwards, when they're lying flat on their backs on the mat, gasping for breath, Bobbi turns her head to look at Daisy thoughtfully.

"It always helped me, after a breakup," she says gently. "Whenever Hunter and I hit an off-phase, I'd get Mack down on the mats, fight until I stopped thinking about it."

"Oh," Daisy says awkwardly, "I mean, it wasn't really a  _breakup_ , it just-"

"Then why haven't you talked in weeks?" Bobbi asks, direct, and Daisy blinks, because oh,  _right_ , she's not talking about Lincoln.

"It's complicated," she evades in the end, rolls to her feet. "You up for another round?"

"Always," Bobbi says, flips to her feet. "But if you do want to talk, my bunk door's open, and I've always got a bottle of scotch hidden somewhere Hunter can't find it."

 

+

 

It should have been  _really obvious_ , Coulson thinks afterwards, and Daisy agrees.

"Hey, Director, Daisy needs your help down in Vault D," Jemma tells him earnestly, and he doesn't think twice, just heads down the stairs two at a time, because it's been so long since Daisy needed his help at all.

"Don't-" Daisy says, too late, as he steps into the cell area. There's a hum of electricity as he crosses the barrier, and when he turns, he slams straight into it from the other side.

"What," he says flatly, and Daisy laughs shortly.

"They've re-engineered the barrier, done something with the polarity. It's one-way. You can come in. You can't get out."

" _What_ ," Coulson says again, looks over at where she's sitting cross-legged on the bed. "How long have you been down here?"

"About half an hour," she says glumly, and then, louder, "I was  _hungry_ , okay, I hope you know that, whichever one of you pulled this trick." The intercom crackles on, and Jemma nervously clears her throat.

"Hi," she says. "This is, ah, an intervention. From the team. You're staying down there until the two of you  _bloody talk this out_."

"Jemma, come on," Daisy groans, and Coulson frowns.

"Simmons, you know I could have you court-martialled."

"Yes, sir," Jemma agrees, in a tone that indicates she doesn't believe he'll go through with that at all. "For what it's worth, sir, we've all noticed. Well, except for Fitz, but he's a bit self-centered at the best of times. I just drew the short straw."

"How long are you going to  _keep us in here_?" Daisy asks, and there's some muttered conversation.

"I think the rest of the afternoon should be sufficient," Jemma says primly. "We'll let you out at dinner. I'm turning off the video feed and the comms now, you'll be perfectly private."

 

+

 

"Wait, I-" Daisy says, but it's too late. "Ugh," she complains, "I just wanted her to bring me a  _sandwich_." Coulson gives her a sympathetic look, sits down at the foot of the bed and leans back against the wall, carefully giving her distance.

"It's not a sandwich," he says, "but-" and he pulls the pack of Twizzlers from his jacket pocket, offers her one.

"Oh," Daisy says softly, "Coulson, thanks," and takes a strip of licorice, chews it thoughtfully. "Wow," she says after a moment of silence, "it feels like a long time since that plane ride, huh."

"I was so scared for you," Coulson remembers, bites into his own licorice. "You were being so brave, but god, Daisy, I was so  _scared_ , and I didn't know how to help you. Taking you to the Retreat, it felt like the only possible move. But I should never have left you there on your own."

"No, you- you had no choice," Daisy argues. "What happened afterwards, it wasn't your fault." _  
_

"It wasn't yours either," he tells her, and watches the way her eyes flick to his prosthetic, the guilt that passes over her face. "Daisy, this wasn't your fault."

"You wouldn't have lost your hand if it wasn't for me," Daisy whispers. "Me and my mom and what I am."

"You're not responsible for Jiaying," Coulson says, reaches out for her without thinking and touches her gently on the shoulder. "You're not responsible for this."

"You couldn't even talk to me about it," Daisy whispers even more quietly, closes her eyes, and he sees that her hands are white-knuckled. "You talked to  _Price_ , and not me." Coulson feels his own stab of guilt at that, drops his hand away from her.

"I didn't want- I couldn't talk to you about it, I didn't want it to be another burden on you," he admits. "Price was a mistake. A bad mistake. I knew she was playing me, but I didn't know the extent of it. If I'd known, if I'd suspected, I'd never have-"

"But you did," Daisy tells him. "I warned you, and you did. She was turning my people into  _weapons_ , Phil."

"I know," he says softly, swallows around the knot of guilt. "I know. When I found out, when Hunter and Mack came back from that recon mission, I felt sick for a week, I'm so  _sorry_ , Daisy."

"Yeah," Daisy says, "well, we wouldn't be dealing with an outbreak, anyway, if it wasn't for me."

"Hey," he tells her, "hey, come on, that's not on you. None of this is on you. You were a hero, Daisy, you  _are_ a hero," and when he sees that she's crying, he can't help it, reaches out again, presses his palm to her cheek and brushes away her tears in a gesture that feels instinctively familiar.

"Lincoln thinks we're monsters," she says after a moment. "It took a lot of convincing for him to stay, even at the Cocoon."

"How can he say that," Coulson snaps, angry just at the thought. "About  _you_. How can he say that."

"I don't know, Phil, how can you sleep with a woman who told me I was an ignorant, dangerous weapon?" Daisy replies, and ouch, that stings. She sighs, bites her lip. "Sorry," she adds, "that was uncalled for."

"Not untrue, though," Coulson admits, and she sighs again, shifts a little closer, leans her head on his shoulder and takes another Twizzler.

"Lincoln and I didn't break up," she murmurs.

"Oh," Coulson says, " _oh_ , then what-"

"It's not a break up if you're not dating," she says, as if it's obvious. "I know you thought we were- I mean, you weren't even talking to me, but I could tell you were jealous. It made me mad, actually. You had no reason to be, and I had every reason to be, and I still had to work with Price like an adult until she slipped and showed her hand."

"I'm an idiot," Coulson tells her, and she laughs a little, nods.

"Such an idiot," she agrees. "I  _kissed_ Lincoln, a while back, but it wasn't- I don't know. I needed someone on my side. I don't have the energy to fix someone else, to help them learn to love their powers again. It got awkward. We had, uh, different ideas about where our relationship was headed. It's part of why he's based at the Cocoon, now, along with his work as a transitioner."

"You deserve someone in your corner," Coulson breathes, "you deserve someone flawless, Daisy, someone who sees what you are."

"I know," Daisy says quietly, lays her hand on his. "Going to step up to the challenge, Director?" and it makes him speechless for a moment.

"Are you-" 

"Serious? As I've ever been. Maybe Jemma, the team, maybe they were right. We've been avoiding each other for months, Phil, this is  _stupid_ , because I love you, okay, I'm not going to let our stupid guilt get in the way of that."

"Oh," Coulson says again, and it's all he can say, but he turns to face her, cups her cheek again.

"I'd really like to kiss you," she admits, "you and your stupid perfect face, Phil Coulson." That's enough, he thinks, that's everything he's ever wanted to hear, basically, and he pulls her in, traces his tongue lightly over her lower lip, presses his forehead against hers. "No," she whispers, "like this," slides her hand around the nape of his neck, seals her mouth hard against his in a kiss that's full of determination and promise.

"That's better," he agrees, and she laughs, kisses him again, grazes her teeth sharp against his lip and makes him moan into it. Somehow Daisy is in his lap and his arms are around her waist, and when he dares to trail kisses down her jaw, to nuzzle against her throat, she makes an approving noise, wiggles further into his lap, and Coulson is  _all about_ this turn of events.

"We're going to talk to each other better," Daisy declares between kisses, and Coulson nods, murmurs agreement. "It's going to be way easier to talk to each other, right. Because we'll be  _together_."

"We'll make it work," he tells her. "No more avoiding."

"Okay," Daisy says. "Okay. Now can we, like, make out furiously until dinner time? I need distraction from how hungry I am."

"Well, I mean, you could eat the rest of the Twizzlers," he says lightly, and she smacks his shoulder but does pull another one from the packet.

"Last time you offered me a Twizzler, you also told me I was the most beautiful thing you'd ever seen," she murmurs contemplatively, bites into it, and Coulson tightens his arms around her.

"Hasn't changed," he says, kisses her cheek, and Daisy smiles, her face open and trusting and absolutely the most gorgeous thing Coulson has ever seen.

"Um," Jemma says at that moment through the intercom, "we're going to open the door, okay, so can you please, like, not be hideously angry at me? Or, alternatively, please put your clothes back on."

"I could actually court-martial her," Coulson mutters, "she has the worst timing."

"You could," Daisy agrees. "But you have to admit. She kind of did us a favor."


End file.
